Zenith Releases The Defy 21 Spectrum Series — A Celebration Of Color And Light

Colors have become a bit of a thing in watchmaking over the last year or so. This is something I am very much for. Colors are fun, and watch collecting should also be equally as fun, therefore watch collecting should be colorful. I’m not a mathematician, but that makes for a pretty compelling argument in my books! The new Zenith Spectrum series is a perfect example of this.

Some brands have embraced this comeback with arms wide open, and Zenith has to be commended for being one such brand. The Swiss brand has happily used colors in various ways across its DEFY line in the past few years. We’ve seen colored ceramic cases and different colored dials, and even movements. We’ve mainly seen blues, greens, and purples up to this point, but now Zenith has decided to take the next step to expand its palette. Not only that, but we’re now adding in precious stones too. Shiny!

An El Primero 21 heart

As the name suggests, at the heart of these colorful novelties is the El Primero 21, Zenith’s revolutionary 1/100th of a second chronograph caliber that beats at the blistering speed of 50Hz. Right now, this is the fastest chronograph in production and, indeed, the only one that can accurately measure elapsed time to 1/100th of a second and display it legibly. With the El Primero 21 doing the business on the inside, what has Zenith done to create an external fanfare?

Meet the Zenith Spectrum

Named after the range of colors produced by the different wavelengths of visible light, the Spectrum series features five watches representing five different spectrum frequencies. You may momentarily wonder why the recently launched Ultraviolet is not a part of this collection? Well, if we go back to our physics lessons, “Ultraviolet” means “beyond violet”, with violet being the color of the highest frequencies of visible light. So, Ultraviolet is outside of the spectrum of visible light frequencies. If you paid attention in school and knew this instantly, well done. I was one of those who was momentarily wondering.

…288 brilliant-cut white diamonds.

The five Spectrum series watches’ recurring themes are a 44m stainless steel case, which has been entirely embellished with 288 brilliant-cut white diamonds. Each version features a bezel set with 44 baguette-cut precious stones, matching colored movements, and rubber straps. Green tsavorites for the green edition, orange sapphires for the orange edition, blue sapphires for the blue edition, amethyst for the purple edition, and black spinels for the black edition.

Why a Zenith Spectrum model in black?

I’m a little confused by the black edition, as literal black light is not a thing. A black light emits long-wave ultraviolet light, but, as we’ve discussed, ultraviolet light is not part of the visible spectrum of light. I’d have possibly gone with yellow instead of black to stay in keeping with the spectrum theme. Still, I get that black is invariably more commercially viable. Not everyone loves yellow watches as much as I do.

…I’m not a diamond kinda guy.

It’s tough to pick a winner here because I’m not a diamond kinda guy. I’ve bought diamonds twice, both times for my wife, but they’re not something I could see myself wearing. That said, I do quite like the colored stones on the bezels. Every guy has to allow himself a little bit of a guilty pleasure, right? Ignoring the diamond-set case, the blue is probably just ahead as my favorite. I like a nice sapphire.

One more thing…

Another interesting fact. I had to google the tsavorite stones used in the green model as I would have assumed that Zenith would use emeralds as they’re the better-known green stone. I found out that tsavorite is roughly 200 times rarer than emeralds, yet available for a fraction of the price. It also offers a more brilliant sparkle and hides inclusions better than emerald. I found that quite interesting. I still think I prefer the blue-/green color of emeralds over the more vibrant hue of tsavorites. Isn’t learning fun?

The Spectrum series is limited to 10 pieces per color, and they are exclusively available at Zenith boutiques worldwide. Price – 34,900 CHF. Find out more on the Zenith website.